Rep. Jody Barrett, a Dickson Republican, is sponsoring a measure that would disclose the family income of students who receive state aid to attend private schools. (Photo: John Patipillo/Tennessee Lookout)
Legislation is brewing in Tennessee aimed at increasing transparency about the state’s new private school voucher program.
A House K-12 subcommittee on Tuesday blocked Democratic Rep. Sam McKenzie’s bill that would have provided lawmakers with more information about the 20,000 students who received private school vouchers, primarily whether they attended private or public schools last year.
But Republican Rep. Jody Barrett, who opposed creating the program last year, is sponsoring a separate bill that would HB1544which would provide lawmakers with more information, including the family income of children who receive state aid to attend private schools.
More insight into the $144 million program comes as Gov. Bill Lee pushes to double the number of vouchers offered by the state.
Lee told reporters this week that there was no data of “any value” because the program was only a year old.
“The most important data is that parents know what’s best for their children. If they want a scholarship, then they should get one,” said Gov. Bill Lee, who oversees private school vouchers. (Photo: John Patipillo/Tennessee Lookout)
“The most important statistic is that parents know what’s best for their children. If they want a scholarship, then they should get one,” Lee said.
Before answering questions about the voucher program, Lee often noted that the state had increased funding for public schools every year during his tenure.
Critics of vouchers say they are an entitlement for private school parents that will take money away from public schools and put the state in financial danger.
Knoxville’s McKenzie sees his legislation, HB1052died Tuesday morning before the subcommittee.
“They didn’t want the public to know who got the coupons,” McKenzie said later. “It’s obvious.”
The state’s financial projections for the measure passed last year predicted that 66% of students receiving the funding ($7,300 each) would come from private schools. McKenzie estimated the figure at 80-90 per cent and accused the state government of “giving away money” when it could not afford the program.
Barrett’s bill would ask for more information, including each student’s county of residence, the school attended when applying for funds, the private school each recipient attended, each student’s grade level, annual family income and total costs, which include third-party contracts, administrative expenses, advertising and marketing and the number of “scholarships.”
Barrett, of Dickson, is trying to pave the way for his bill, saying he told lawmakers his measure “is not a relitigation of the private school voucher bill” but an attempt to gather more information to help lawmakers make decisions.
Supporters of the legislation pushed for it in 2025, saying it was intended to help low-income children escape struggling schools. But the Department of Education declined to release the number of students who attended private schools before receiving funds, saying state law did not require it.
They don’t want the public to know who got the coupons, that’s obvious.
– Rep. Sam McKenzie, D-Knoxville
“If the vast majority of that money is going to students who are already in private schools, so that’s disadvantaging those who applied and couldn’t get, then that’s something we need to understand and we need to make adjustments in the implementation process,” Barrett said.
Half of this year’s vouchers go to students from families at 300 percent of the federal poverty level, which is more than $96,000 for a family of four, and the other half goes to families without the highest income.
House Education Committee Chairman Rep. Mark White, R-East Memphis, said he voted against McKenzie’s bill because he didn’t think it was the right “tool.”
Asked about Barrett’s bill, White said he was working on it. He expressed concerns about student privacy and the release of information, but said he could support a universal measure showing how many of the program’s recipients come from public or private schools.
In addition, students who receive a voucher must take a Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program test or a state standardized achievement test. But the results were not made public.
Lee acknowledged Monday that the state needs to find ways to improve the program, which he said could include adding accountability measures. But his main goal is to expand private school vouchers to 40,000 students at a cost of $310 million next year.
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